


Uncharted Waters

by Anomylous



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Stripper/Exotic Dancer, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Smut, F/M, Jealousy, Love Triangles, Possessive Behavior, Romance, Rough Sex, Sexual Tension, Slow Burn, Vegeta (Dragon Ball) vs Feelings, Vegeta being Vegeta (Dragon Ball)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-07-04
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:00:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24280972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anomylous/pseuds/Anomylous
Summary: Engineer by day, exotic dancer by night; Bulma Briefs is just living her life one day at a time. Until one night, Yamcha, Bulma's boyfriend, pisses off a group of three Saiyan men by neglecting to pay his loan back to them. The savage group takes Bulma as collateral until Yamcha is able to pay off his debts, however one of the Saiyan brutes finds himself drawn to the captive, much more than he would like to admit. Bulma finds herself equally intrigued by the man, but finding her kidnapper attractive is totally wrong... right?
Relationships: Bulma Briefs & Vegeta, Bulma Briefs/Vegeta
Comments: 51
Kudos: 90





	1. Come and Fuck My Life Up

Sauntering through the smoky bar in a daze and making her best efforts to avoid eye contact with any of the grimey men who ogled at her, Bulma Briefs gracefully plopped down on the scuffed up bar stool and sighed in dissatisfaction of her recurring poor decision to return to her night job of exotic dancing. Only one more hour to go until her shift was over.

"Vodka soda," she uttered through her apparent exhaustion, though feeling familiar eyes locked onto her like a lion's prey in her peripheral. This was the second week in a row _he_ came to this strip club, patiently waiting for his opportunity to engage the blue haired beauty at last. Flipping her curly teal locks to the opposite side of where she normally parted her hair, she remained cool as a cucumber while the stranger called to the bar tender and offered to add her drink to his already open tab.

Intrigued and slightly flattered, Bulma raised an eyebrow and held her gaze to her freshly manicured fingers, marveling at the royal blue polish and the implication that the cute stranger at the bar was totally into her. As if on cue, the bar tender slid over her vodka soda and Bulma reached for the fizzy drink, promptly taking a large gulp and thoughtfully placing the glass down on the table to suggestively run her index finger around the rim of the glass. 

"I've seen you around here a lot lately. Like what you see?" Bulma tested, slowly moving her flirty gaze to the man sitting two seats to her left, with no one sitting in between the pair to interfere.

"I do," the mysterious man confirmed with suave as he adjusted in his seat. "Mind if I let you in on a little secret?"

Bulma shrugged nonchalantly playing the part, "only if it's worth my time, stalker."

The man softly grinned and took a sip of his beer, dark eyes glued to her crystal blues as the music from the club thudded into Bulma's chest, matching with her heartbeat. "I enjoy watching you dance up there, but I really like seeing _you._ Not you focusing on entertaining, not you focusing on every movement matching the rhythm of the music, not you focusing on the reaction of other men in the crowd and wondering if what you're doing is truly worth it all. I like seeing you just being... well, you."

Not anticipating such a thoughtful response, Bulma pursed her painted red lips for a moment, contemplating his words carefully, her interest now utterly piqued, but remained guarded, "okay, buddy. Does that line work on every girl you try to pick up at the club? Because let me tell you, I am _so_ not the one."

To his chagrin, the man shook his head in amusement and chuckled. "What's your name, blue?"

Bulma raised an eyebrow incredulously before taking another large swig of her drink to finish it off, desiring instant liquid courage. She inhaled and turned her body to fully face him, placing her delicate hand on her lap before releasing a tired sigh, assuming this scenario would likely play out the same way as it always did: stupid boy enters the club, shows interest and compliments her, takes her home and then leaves her, making her feel lonely and worthless. Not this time, she decided.

"Listen, champ. Do you know how many guys come in here every single night and try to sweep me off my feet while waxing poetic and shit?" She asked with underlying pain in her eyes. "I'll save you some time and answer that for you; a fucking lot. That's how many."

"I'm sure lots of guys do! But I'm really not like those other guys-"

Bulma interjected with a cynical guffaw and slowly leaned forward, closing the space between the two strangers, nearly feeling the man's breath hitch. "You know who says they're not like most guys? _Most guys._ So, please spare me by not bothering to waste either of our time."

The man shifted in his seat as he attempted to read the blue haired beauty and determined that she was an enigma who clearly had a wall up, to say the very least, but he wasn't giving up that easily. 

"You're right. I'm sorry for wasting your time tonight."

He smiled genuinely before finishing off his beer with one large gulp and stood up, gathering his coat and pulling out cash to close his tab and tip the bar tender with. Just as he was about to leave, facing away from Bulma, the blue haired beauty growled under her breath and crossed her arms over her chest in defeat. 

"My name is Bulma."

The man paused for a moment before swiftly spinning back around to face Bulma, a shit-eating grin instantly painted across his face as his eyes playfully met hers.

Once Bulma caught on, she clicked her tongue and jumped out of her seat to smack the amused man on the arm. 

"You jerk! You weren't even planning on really leaving, were you? This was all just part of your plan to play the sad guy role and get me to give you my name out of pity, wasn't it?"

"Affirmative," the man chuckled, holding out his hand confidently, "how did I do?"

Bulma rolled her eyes and crossed her arms tightly to her chest, glaring at the stranger's hand for a moment before sighing and carefully easing her muscles, placing her hand in his reluctantly. Maybe he was different...

"You're lucky you're persistent and cute to boot, stranger."

"Yamcha," he added, gripping her hand a little tighter, "my name is Yamcha."

* * *

**One month later...**

"Man in the white shirt in the back is willing to throw in a couple hundred zeni for a private dance. Are you game for that?"

Bulma closed her eyes and inhaled as she nodded definitively. "Yeah, I can do it. I'd prefer to be up on stage though."

"But you're a hot commodity, Skye. The customers just can't get enough of you, so much so that they're even willing to pay a little extra, know what I mean?"

 _'Skye'_ exhaled and averted her gaze from her boss, "I'm well aware of my irresistible qualities and effects I have on men, Al."

"Well, are you going to go over there or what?" Al asked, nodding in the direction of where the customer was waiting before stealing a quick glance of Bulma's revealing outfit that consisted of shiny blue boy shorts and a matching lacey tube top, the perfect attire to showcase her curvy body.

"Yeah, yeah. Keep your shirt on, perv," Bulma huffed and rolled her eyes before quickly putting her game face on as she glided through the crowd to make her way to the private room. She stopped at the curtain, taking a deep breath and gathered herself before opening the curtain with sheer confidence. 

"Hey there, I'm Skye. Nice to meet -"

"Figured you'd want a break from weird dudes trying to get all up in your shit," Yamcha smirked from the couch off to the side, to Bulma's complete surprise.

"Oh, thank Kami it's you!" Bulma exclaimed in relief, closing the curtain behind her as Yamcha got up from the couch. 

After making sure the pair had adequate privacy, Bulma practically jumped into Yamcha's strong arms and kissed him passionately, Yamcha immediately reciprocating the kiss and pressing her against the wall eagerly before deepening the kiss. As he began to brush his lips down to Bulma's neck, the blue haired beauty snickered as she ran her fingers through his hair.

"You're still paying for this, you know. No freebies," she whispered, causing Yamcha to stop kissing her and sigh dramatically. 

"Come on, babe! Are you serious?"

Bulma raised an eyebrow in disbelief, "you want to see just how serious I am?"

"Fine, I'll pay. Sheesh."

"Much better," Bulma smiled playfully and pressed her lips to Yamcha's before quickly pulling away again. "You know, if you actually asked me out officially, I wouldn't make you pay. But since you're technically just another customer and not my boyfriend..."

"Oh, I haven't asked you out officially yet?" Yamcha teased.

"Nope, at least last time I checked you haven't," Bulma retorted with a smirk.

"Well, in that case," Yamcha said playfully, slowly dropping Bulma and reaching into his pocket to pull out a small black box, Bulma's blue eyes immediately sparkling with excitement. 

He carefully opened the box to display a beautiful diamond ring, elegant enough to put even the most expensive jewelry worn by royalty to shame. Bulma's jaw dropped nearly to the floor, quickly covering her mouth with her hand before moving her free hand out towards Yamcha. 

"Bulma, will you officially be my girlfriend?"

"Of course!" Bulma squealed, awestruck by the captivating ring that Yamcha placed on her delicate finger, fitting perfectly. "Yamcha, it's absolutely breath taking. I love it."

Yamcha blushed and shrugged, "well, I figured, what would be a better way to make things official than offering the most beautiful piece of jewelry to the most beautiful girl in the world?"

Bulma giggled like a school girl, but realization struck hard, bringing her back to reality for the moment, "oh, Yamcha. You're the best! But I do have to ask," she started to say, suddenly feeling herself drop from cloud nine to cloud five or four, "and please don't take offense to this, but I know that you can't really afford something like this."

Yamcha pursed his lips and looked down, "don't worry about that. I ran into some quick money and was able to make it happen."

Bulma furrowed her brow, following his gaze to the floor and back up to his face, staring into guilt-ridden eyes. "Yamcha, _how_ were you able to afford this ring?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Excuse me?" Bulma scoffed, crossing her arms and pushing her hip out to the side, "I am not accepting a bullshit answer like that. Tell me how you got the money, Yamcha, or I swear to Kami..."

"It's really nothing, I promise. I just ran into some extra zeni."

"No one just 'runs into' money, Yamcha."

"Well I did. Honest," Yamcha pressed on, moving his gaze to meet Bulma's raging blue eyes, finally having a new understanding of 'if looks could kill'.

"You're really not lying to me right now?" Bulma urged.

"No," Yamcha lied, but keeping his poker face strong enough for Bulma to finally ease her stance, her face noticeably softening after a few moments. 

"Ok," Bulma sighed, "but listen to me."

She took a step forward, reaching up to cup Yamcha's face between her hands, "there's nothing I hate more than liars. So, if I find out that you're lying to me, I'll fucking kill you," she said with a slightly insane smile, clearly achieving instilling the fear of the Gods into her boyfriend. 

"Got it," Yamcha acknowledged and felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up in response. Suddenly feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket, he nonchalantly placed his hand in his pocket to silence the device and reached out for Bulma to pull her in to a warm embrace.

"Well, now that that's over, I really do love the ring. It's so beautiful," Bulma said genuinely, reciprocating the embrace. 

"Anything for you, babe," Yamcha forced a smile, feeling his phone buzz again and unexpectedly pulled away from the embrace to Bulma's disappointment. "I'm so sorry to ruin this moment, but I've got to get back to work. I came here on my break to see you and of course make things official, but unfortunately they need me at the shop tonight."

"Ugh, that sucks," Bulma huffed, "but I get it. I'm probably going to work a little in the lab tonight when I get out of here, so I'll be up pretty late," she said and smiled softly, "I'm really happy you stopped by and couldn't wait to give this to me!"

"You're right, I couldn't wait! And I'm so glad you like it. I'll text you when I'm out, ok?"

"Sounds good, _boyfriend,"_ Bulma grinned. "I love being able to call you that now!"

"You're too cute," Yamcha smiled, placing a quick kiss on her forehead and melting the blue haired beauty to her core. "Later, babe."

"Later," Bulma grinnned, floating back up to cloud nine as her boyfriend slowly released her hand and disappeared into the crowd. 

Bulma sighed in satisfaction, plopping down onto the couch and deciding to hide out there to savor her happiness for just a few more moments. She hadn't even noticed Yamcha frantically pulling his phone out of his pocket and rapidly texting before completely being out of her sight.

* * *

"Are you fucking kidding me?" A gruff voice chided, "that's definitely not how this works. You lose your bet, you lose your money and you do not receive anymore until you've paid your debts. We're not a charity, we're loan sharks, _and_ we're Elite Saiyan warriors, moron."

Yamcha dropped to his knees in pain as the Saiyan's fist promptly connected to his abdomen. The Saiyan narrowed his onyx eyes at Yamcha and clicked his tongue, lowering himself to level with the latter.

"You now owe us 1.5 million zeni for wasting my time. I was going to be more than reasonable and give you a turnaround time of six months, but since you've attempted to deceive us and have pissed me off, you now have one month, Earth scum."

"One month?" Yamcha cried out, holding his stomach in pain as he slowly began to sit up. "How am I going to come up with that in a month?"

"You'd better get creative," the brute snickered, running a hand through his black hair that was pointed up into the shape of a flame. He sported a mean scowl as he rose from the ground, holding his glare down to Yamcha and noticing a cellphone on the ground that was lit up with a very beautiful woman on the lock screen, a shock of blue hair catching his attention. Intrigued by a sudden sinister thought, the Saiyan raised a curious eyebrow. 

"Who is that Earth woman on your phone?"

"No one you need to know," Yamcha spat, earning a kick from one of the other men standing beside the brute.

"You know what," the Saiyan contemplated, "you're going to tell me _exactly_ who this woman is. I think you need a little motivation to pay us back that zeni, don't you guys agree?"

The two other Saiyans nodded and smirked darkly as they both confirmed in unison, "Agree, Prince Vegeta."

Vegeta snickered as Yamcha's eyes widened in fear, "it's settled then. As a matter of fact, you don't even need to tell me her name or provide coordinates. I can easily track her down with my scouter using a new feature that was ironically installed recently."

"Leave Bulma out of this, please..." Yamcha begged as one of the other Saiyans kicked him again.

"At ease," Vegeta ordered sternly, the other brute immediately complying and standing down. 

"Sorry, Vegeta."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and moved his dangerous gaze back to a very desperate-looking Yamcha.

"Quit your begging, Earthling. You look pathetic."

"Please," Yamcha repeated, panting in pain, "I'll find a way to pay you back, but leave her out of this."

"Tch," Vegeta huffed, "you shouldn't have tried to steal from us and then have the audacity to ask for more zeni. This 'Bulma' will be captured in one hour from now, and we will return her once your debts have been paid," he advised matter-of-factly, shooting a quick glance over to one of the other Saiyans. "Understood, Nappa?"

Nappa, the larger of the three Saiyans, nodded without missing a beat. "On it."

"Very good," Vegeta said with satisfaction as he crossed his arms to his breast plate that was placed over his royal blue battle suit. "Raditz, you'd better go with him. I don't need any careless mistakes to occur."

"Yes, sir," Raditz confirmed before the two Saiyans rapidly ascended and disappeared into the night sky.

"Fuck," Yamcha cursed under his breath as Vegeta took a step closer.

"You better get a move on it, scar face. And if you don't have my money on time, you and your Earth woman will be promptly eliminated. I will show no mercy to either of you. Understand?"

"Yes," Yamcha confirmed, his muscular body wobbling as he slowly stood up. "I'll have every last bit of zeni in one month."

"Delightful," Vegeta smirked, "now get the fuck out my sight."

Yamcha obliged as the prince watched in disgust, lusting for battle but unfortunately settling on this until further notice. He and the other two Saiyans had been sent to Earth on an assignment to swindle naive Earthlings into purchasing weaponry or other illegal galactic trade, or, in Yamcha's case, lending money with a very high interest rate, funded by the Frieza Force, which Vegeta and the other two Saiyans were currently part of. 

Typically, they would partake in purging and selling planets to willing buyers for Lord Frieza, but the three were temporarily placed on this assignment to scout Earth and the knowledge and capabilities of the Earthlings prior to inevitably purging and selling the planet. Vegeta longed for the order to finally purge Earth, finding this mud ball of a planet to be useless, however he knew he'd be given orders to carry that out soon enough. 

Much to his dissatisfaction, Vegeta had received a transmission on his scouter and felt annoyance overcome him. Connecting to the incoming call, he answered with a sharp, "what?"

"We've found the Earth woman, but we're taking a small detour," Nappa cleared his throat as he anticipated Vegeta's inevitable less than enthusiastic response. 

"You...are taking a _detour?_ And where the fuck do you think you two boneheads are going?"

"Well, perhaps detour isn't the right word. But, it appears the Earthling works at this club. So we figured, why not scope it out first, you know? You should come, too. It seems like a fairly classy joint considering it's a strip club."

"I will do _no_ such thing, Nappa! You two idiots can't keep your dicks in your pants longer than a few minutes at a time, I swear!"

"Oh come on, Vegeta! Cut loose for once!" Raditz added in the background. 

"Tch," Vegeta huffed and balled his fists. "Hurry up and get back here. I don't want our captive to get away or catch on to you two ass hats stalking her like prey, got it?"

"Fine," Nappa advised and disconnected. 

Vegeta took a deep breath, glaring off into darkness as he contemplated Nappa's offer to join them at the club. Nappa was right; Vegeta did need to cut loose especially now more than ever. He'd been so tied up with carrying out Frieza's orders without hesitation that he had finally reached his maximum level of stress capacity, needing some sort of relief.

With that, Vegeta let out an aggravated sigh and rapidly ascended into the darkness, deciding to meet the other Saiyans at the club to his reluctance, before changing his mind.

Once he arrived and made his way inside, his eyes were drawn to the bar, not having indulged in quite some time. Quickly shooting back a glass of whiskey, he scouted the room and instantly found both Nappa and Raditz in the midst of receiving a lap dance provided by two barbie doll-looking blondes, making his stomach churn at the sight. 

Rolling his eyes and ordering another whiskey on the rocks, his attention was suddenly grabbed by blue hair that looked similar to the Earth woman's hair on Yamcha's phone. Narrowing his eyes in scrutiny, he recognized her and was able to make the determination that she was indeed the woman they would be taking tonight. He chuckled darkly to himself, wondering how a shmuck like Yamcha could land a woman like that.

Thoroughly scoping her out, he noticed her creamy skin that appeared flattering under the stage lights, and her blue hair shimmery and captivating. She had been wearing her usual skimpy royal blue boy shorts with a black corset that hugged her curves, and tall black heeled leather boots over her fishnets to tie the sexy outfit together. Allowing her long hair to fall in front of her face as she dipped low, the eye-catching Earth woman danced casually in a wide cage on the stage with a few other women, though Vegeta's eyes were only drawn to her.

Breaking his inappropriate thoughts momentarily, Vegeta harrumphed under his breath at the Earth woman's choice of skimpy attire, though he had to admit she looked quite desirable and fiercely confident on stage. He hastily shot back his glass of whiskey, unexpectedly feeling the alcohol beginning rush to his head. He glanced up at her once more through his empty glass, soon finding that she had also been looking in his direction. 

As if she could hear his thoughts, her aqua eyes soon met his onyx ones, locking onto them as she sensually moved to the beat of the song, never breaking her confident gaze while moving and swaying her hips. Vegeta swallowed hard and felt his body tense as the Earth woman watched him curiously from the stage, her perfectly manicured hands firmly grasping the bars of the cage, stirring up the Saiyan prince more than he cared to admit. In fact, no female had ever had this effect on him before. He loathed this feeling, usually preferring to be the one in control of seduction, yet here he was being utterly seduced by a stranger without physical touch. 

She slowly dipped low as she slid her hands down the metal bars and moved one hand outside of the cage to curl her index finger repeatedly, signaling the hot and bothered Saiyan her way. He felt his cheeks begin to burn a shade of crimson, but brushing it off in an effort to avoid any signs of weakness, he crossed his arms and scowled at her. He would not allow his slight intoxication to deter him from the objective, which was to capture her and hold her as a hostage until he got his money. With that, he scowled and crossed his arms before darting his gaze in the opposite direction. 

Bulma smirked, understanding she'd need to work a little harder than that to get the man's attention, and tonight she was in the mood for a challenge. In one swift movement, Bulma rose from the ground and slid in between the bars of the cage, steadily making her way over to the stubborn Saiyan. Once the realization of her actually approaching him struck, his body tensed and he felt his heart pound in his chest. How could she, a mere Earth woman, have this effect on him, an Elite Saiyan warrior and prince of all Saiyans?

She stepped right into his personal bubble without hesitating and placed her hand gently on his chest to nudge him back. He took two steps backwards and felt his legs come to a sudden halt as he backed his way against a booth. With a devilish grin, Bulma carefully pushed him back, Vegeta unable to comprehend what kind of spell he was under to allow any woman to control his body like this. She looked down at him through thick lashes and licked her lips as she couldn't help but feel attracted to the man in his battle suit.

"Wha-what are you doing, woman?" Vegeta asked through gritted teeth, struggling to maintain any last bit of dignity he had left. 

"I've never seen you around here before," Bulma purred, placing a hand on his shoulder and noticing him tense up to her touch. She chuckled darkly as she slowly moved to straddle him. "Relax. I promise I won't bite...hard."

"Vulgar woman," Vegeta muttered under his breath as he allowed her to straddle him and reactively placing his hand on her trim waste. He awkwardly glanced down at the money on the table that was left by a previous customer, Bulma following his gaze and smirking to herself as she brought her lips to his ear.

"This one's on the house," Bulma snickered deviously as she swiftly spun around to face away from the Saiyan and sat down in his lap, satisfied to feel his growing erection beneath her. She grabbed his gloved hands and slid them down either side of her curvy body, holding them at her hips as she began to move and grind against his lap.

Vegeta inhaled her intoxicating scent of strawberries, his animalistic urges beginning to set in as the Earth woman continued to dance on his lap, gripping her waist tighter and pulling her body closer to his. She snickered at his reaction and bent over to touch the floor, allowing the Saiyan to steal a glimpse of her perfectly rounded ass that was propped up on his lap.

 _Hold it together. You are stronger than this,_ Vegeta thought to himself before losing all of his control as the blue haired beauty slid back up and turned her body to face him, her eyes locking on to his. She began to thrust her hips forward and noticed his eyes fill with lust regardless of his efforts to fight it. She was unsure of the reasoning behind her fierce attraction to this particular customer, and felt herself beginning to give into temptation as she placed her hands on his and slid them up her body, stopping them right below her breasts.

"Oh my Gods! Look at Vegeta, Raditz!" 

Vegeta instantly snapped out the spell to glare up at Nappa who had been standing behind Bulma, wanting nothing more than to rip his head clean off of his body. The fuming Saiyan picked Bulma up like a rag doll in one brief movement to stand up, and then gently placed her on the ground before allowing a small bolt of ki to form in his hand. Nappa's eyes widened in response and he slowly stepped back, Bulma furrowing her brow as she attempted to process what the hell had just happened. She glanced down at the small ball of shimmery energy forming in Vegeta's hand and also took a step back, though to her horror was suddenly snatched up from behind. 

"What the fuck!" Bulma yelped as Raditz grabbed her and bolted out of the noisy and busy club fast enough to avoid anyone noticing.

"Tch. What the fuck!" Vegeta bellowed as he shot daggers into a very frightened Nappa. 

"We got a little distracted by some chicks over there, but I saw you with that blue haired broad and got excited for you. I swear I meant no harm by it!"

"That blue haired _broad_ is our captive. I was trying to seduce her to ease the process of luring her out of the club with me, instead of grabbing her like a goddamned wild animal, you fucking idiots!"

"I mean, it sort of looked like she seduced you, not the other way around..."

"You had better shut your fucking mouth, Nappa, or I swear I will end your pathetic life right in the middle of this club!"

"Shit, sorry, Vegeta. I just thought -"

"Not another word," Vegeta snapped, absorbing the ki back into his hand and scowling at the large Saiyan. "Now, let's bring the captive to our hideout before someone notices. I'm certain Raditz is struggling to keep her quiet out there."

"Right," Nappa agreed sheepishly as he and Vegeta shuffled out of the club and into the back alley, only to find Bulma laying limp in Raditz's arms.

"What have you done?" Vegeta spat in horror, rushing over to snatch her limp body from the brute's arms.

"She's fine. She just passed out," Raditz confirmed as he furrowed his brow at Vegeta's reaction. "Why do you care so much?"

"I don't," Vegeta retorted without hesitation, glancing down at the unconscious Earth woman in his arms and scowling. "We just need to make sure she stays in one piece to ensure Yamcha stays motivated. Now let's get out of here before someone sees us with her."

"Meet you there," Nappa said as Raditz nodded, both Saiyans instantly ascending to head to their hideout. 

Vegeta huffed and glanced back down at Bulma, gently holding her head up to his to listen to her steadily breathing. He let out a low growl, unable to determine what the actual fuck was happening to him and why this woman had the ability to make him feel this way. He knew that he would be the absolute last person she'd want to see when she wakes up, but understanding he had a job to do, he gripped her tight before blasting off into the night sky, instantly regretting this entire operation of kidnapping her.


	2. Who is in Control?

Glassy, bloodshot blue eyes began to flutter open, searching and struggling as a bright white light streamed down into Bulma's already flushed face. She shut her eyes instinctively and groaned as her head pounded, relentless nausea suddenly waving over her, enduring a similar feeling to that of an intense hangover. 

Bulma slowly opened her eyes as unexpected flashbacks of fuzzy memories trailed through her brain. She vaguely could remember three unfamiliar men taking her from the club, bringing her to some strange place under the ground before leaving to board a spaceship, likely where she was now. The remaining details were too foggy to remember; unable to make out the faces of her kidnappers, the directions they took or where the ship was located. The more she fought to remember, the less she could visualize what had transpired, memories slipping further into the deep and distant abyss in her mind. 

In a failed attempt to sit up, Bulma realized she was completely paralyzed, trying to push through the drowsiness and disorientation while focusing on her breathing to alleviate the panic that flooded in. She felt absolutely nothing in her body and still had no clear recollection of how she got to this foreign place, scavenging her brain for the last thing she could remember, only darkness continuing to cloud her thoughts. Breathe. 

Inhaling and exhaling at a steady pace, she started to gain some feeling back in her fingers, moving them one-by-one and focusing on their movement, touching the cold metal surface that she was laying on.

From the floor, she anxiously examined the small, unfamiliar room through blurred vision, seeing everything in doubles until her vision eventually corrected itself. The well-kept, bland space resembled a jail cell, only having a stainless steal toilet off to the side, a small sink and a twin size bed that was neatly made up with a thin white sheet. Bulma swallowed hard as she slowly started to come to and gain feeling back in her body inch-by-inch. She soon mustered up the strength to turn over onto her side, shivering as her pale skin grazed the cool metal surface, searching for the nearest exit. The giant, heavy-looking metal door beside her was obviously locked, but it was worth a shot once she could get onto her feet. 

Pushing hard through her temporary weakness to pull herself up off of the floor, Bulma's entire body felt fragile, unsteady and wobbly as she stood up, feeling she'd shatter if she were to fall. She glanced down at her trembling legs, deciding to carefully bend down to unzip her high heeled boots before kicking them off to gain stability as she took a strained step forward, approaching the door. Finally at her wit's end and using every ounce of energy she had left, she let out a loud, ear piercing scream as she desperately pounded on the door. 

"No one can hear you in there, Earth woman," a dark voice over the intercom in the room interrupted her cries for help, sending a dumbfounded Bulma backwards onto her ass while simultaneously letting out a brief yelp. 

"Where... who the fuck are you and where am I?" Bulma struggled to answer, disorientation setting back in and quickly deciding that staying on the ground might be her best choice right now.

"I assure you that you are not in any danger," the voice said calmly, "you are here on a temporary... _vacation."_

"Vacation?" Bulma guffawed, curling up in a ball and holding her stomach due to the nausea. "If this is a vacation, then why do I feel like I've been drugged and run over by a goddamned truck? And why am I trapped in this shitty cell? The fuck sort of vacations have you been taking?"

"You're temporarily away from your home and that _grotesque_ establishment offering erotic dancing to indecent Earthlings. You have shelter, unlimited water supply and a bed; it's vacation enough," the voice snapped, Bulma clicking her tongue in response. 

"Grotesque establishment offering erotic dancing?" Bulma scoffed, "what, are you one hundred years old or something? Who even talks like that?"

"Tch," the voice over the intercom grumbled. "I've had enough of your blabbering, woman."

Bulma attempted to make a sharp retort when her vision began to blur again, the blue haired beauty sighing in discomfort as she swallowed back more nausea. "W-what did you give me? I don't feel so hot right now."

The voice over the intercom growled in clear dissatisfaction, though Bulma did not sense his aggravation was intended towards her or her question. 

"My halfwit subordinate neglected to inform me that he had injected you with a sedative to ensure you stay disoriented for up to three hours. You defintely didn't need that, seeing the drug is to sedate a Saiyan and not a one hundred pound female Earthling. He's a fucking moron."

"S-saiyan?" Bulma muttered, racking her brain to remember her best friend, Goku, and his son, Gohan, were both Saiyans. Goku had always thought they were the only two Saiyans left, but Goku said he also had a brother who was captured and taken from Earth when they were babies; at least that's what his grandfather told him one time, but he never knew if that were true or not.

"Correct. Though, I highly doubt you know much about the Saiyan race."

"Actually," Bulma cleared her throat and swallowed hard, fighting back her illness, "my best friend and his son are Saiyans. Well, Gohan is only half-Saiyan. But I know enough about them."

"He's only half-Saiyan? As in, his father mated with an Earth woman?" 

"That's right!" Bulma answered a little too cheerfully, suddenly changing her demeanor after remembering she had been imprisoned by the person speaking to her over the intercom. "Do you have a problem with that, pal?"

"I sure fucking do; a Saiyan, which mind you, I thought there were only three of us left, has chosen to procreate out of weakness to resist the seduction of an Earthling instead of procreating to carry on the bloodline. Tch, what a waste!"

"Excuse me, but Gohan is the toughest guy I know. He might even be capable of surpassing his father one day. I could honestly see him easily snapping you in half, so please keep up the piss poor attitude, buddy," Bulma shot back through gritted teeth.

"Unlikely," the voice chuckled darkly, _"buddy."_

"I'm really not up for an argument that you'd clearly lose. So, differences aside," Bulma let out a breathy exhale, "can you please have your minion, or whoever the hell drugged me, send a glass of water or some sort of anti nausea medication? I'm starting to feel like actual death."

The voice over the intercom sneered, "woman, you haven't the slightest clue what death feels like. Additionally, I am not a nurse nor am I taking orders from a high-maintenance Earthling."

"Christ! I asked for a fucking glass of water, not to be crowned Miss Universe."

"This isn't a goddamned bed and breakfast. You can either drink from the sink over by your bed, or you can suffer from dehydration; the choice is yours."

"Wow," Bulma scoffed through another wave of nausea, peering over at the sink and shaking her head, "you've given me quite the Sophie's choice."

"Are you capable of keeping quiet for more than thirty seconds at a time? Or do we need to sedate you for longer?"

"You know, you must have a really small dick if you're willing to treat a lady like this, considering you're choosing to speak to me through a box in the wall and don't even have the balls to face me like a man."

The intercom immediately screeched with feedback as an eerie silence followed right after. Bulma remained still, listening intently and furrowing her brow as she suddenly heard heavy foot steps from outside of her cell rapidly approaching the door. With a quick sound of the door unlocking and swinging wide open, a vaguely familar, agitated-looking man stood in the doorway. 

She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she recognized his royal blue battle suit. As Bulma scanned the man, his muscular arms crossed over his breast plate, attentively glaring down at Bulma. She examined his face desperately, trying to recall where she knew him from, certain she had seen him before.

"Well, aren't you going to continue insulting me now that I have _faced you like a man?"_ Vegeta challenged.

"Huh," Bulma contemplated and pushed out a dark chuckle.

"What the hell could possibly be so funny to you right now?" Vegeta growled and harrumphed as he zeroed in on the Earthling.

"It's just that..." Bulma started to say, pausing to read the irritated man's face.

"Get on with it already!"

"You're just _way_ shorter than I was expecting," Bulma smirked before groaning at her stomach as Vegeta balled his fists in fury. "You're actually kind of cute, too."

"Wha- _Cute?"_ Vegeta stammered in anger. "I am not _cute!_ I am a high class warrior and a Saiyan Elite. In fact, I am the Prince of all Saiyans, and I could snap your tiny little body in half, in a matter of milliseconds if I wanted to."

"So, you're a bad boy then? I dig it," Bulma wiggled her eyebrows as Vegeta's cheeks turned a shade of red, his dark eyes wild and raging.

"Do you think this is a joke?" The Saiyan bellowed with a surge of ki instantly forming around his balled fists, sparking a glimpse of a hazy memory in Bulma's brain. "Have you forgotten that you are a prisoner of _mine?_ Meaning, you will do as I please, starting with showing me some goddamned respect!"

The blue haired beauty stared up keenly at Vegeta, unsure why she was so drawn to him, regardless of his short temper and bravado that she could see right through. Bulma glanced over at the increasing energy forming around him, though Vegeta suddenly released his tightly balled fists and eased his stance, absorbing the energy as he took a deep breath. With every movement, Bulma recognized the Saiyan more and more. She recognized his distinctive hair, his rough face, those deep onyx eyes, that god-like body...

Bulma's eyes instantly widened as an unexpected influx of memories began to flood through her brain, confusion and anger crashing into her like a Mack Truck.

"Holy shit, I know _exactly_ who you are," Bulma mused in a whisper, oblivious to Vegeta's sudden anxious, rigid stance as she had been too wrapped up in her revelation to notice. "You're that guy from the club, aren't you? But, why..."

Vegeta pursed his lips before clearing his throat to answer, pausing longer than he intended. "Well, your idiot boyfriend owes me a _lot_ of money, and until he is able to pay his debts, you will remain here in captivity. I've given him one month, so we'll see how fast he can pull it together." 

Awaiting a snarky remark from the Earth woman, though no response followed to his bewilderment, Vegeta darted his gaze away from defeated blue eyes, regretting revealing his presence to her. He had savagely killed thousands of people, exterminated planets, colonies, tribes and homes with no remorse, fought in the most brutal battles in the galaxy, yet a mere Earthling who had looked up at him with sadness in her eyes tore him to pieces inside. He hated feeling his sense of control slipping through his fingers, determining the only plausible explanation was that the woman had to be some sort of sorceress casting this ghastly spell over him.

After Bulma had eventually processed everything, she asked feebly, "is Yamcha ok?"

"Tch," Vegeta crossed his arms. "I advise that you're the one who's suffering the consequences of your mate's stupidity, yet you're still asking about _his_ well being?"

"So is that a yes or no?" Bulma pressed fiercely, ignoring his retort.

"He's fine... for now," Vegeta muttered and rolled his eyes. "As I've previously stated, you are also not currently in any danger; however, don't test me, woman."

"Gee, well when you put it that way," Bulma scoffed before groaning, no longer able to suppress her intense nausea as she suddenly began to dry heave on the floor like a teenager who had indulged in too much alcohol during spring break.

"Are you alright, woman?" Vegeta asked skeptically, accidentally allowing the slightest bit of concern to coat his words, hoping she had been too ill to notice.

"I can't... fight this nausea... it's awful," she breathed out in a whisper, curling back into a ball on her side and feeling utterly vulnerable compared to her typical confident and witty self.

"Fucking Raditz," Vegeta muttered under his breath to avoid Bulma hearing the apprehension in his voice. He let out a quick sigh and darted his gaze away from the ailing woman. "I'll be right back." 

"Wait," an increasingly debilitated Bulma reached out weakly to grab Vegeta's white boot. Carefully observing her flushed face and sweat beading down the Earth woman's forehead, the Saiyan instantly felt uneasy as he scrutinized her sickly complexion. "Please, don't leave me here."

"I..." Vegeta started to say as he caught a glimpse of Nappa rounding the corner and approaching the opened door to Bulma's cell. He quickly snapped back to reality and averted his gaze, "will do no such thing, _Earth_ woman."

"Vegeta, is this an ok time to chat really quick?" Nappa wearily interrupted as he stood in the doorway, sensing the daggers that Vegeta shot into his chest. He quickly glanced down at Bulma to avoid eye contact with the impatient prince, grimacing in response to the sickly-looking woman at his feet. "Yikes...she ok?"

"The hell if I know," Vegeta spat as he swiftly turned on the ball of his heel to face the large Saiyan, hoping Nappa hadn't overheard his conversation with Bulma. "Now, where is Raditz?"

"He's in the laundry facility, ensuring the maintenance crew is fixing that broken -"

"Never mind the maintenance crew! Seek him out at once and advise that I request an audience with him immediately," Vegeta interjected, his words cold and sharp, frightening the large Saiyan as he nodded promptly. 

"Y-yes, Vegeta. I'll go find him now," Nappa trembled and took a small step back, swallowing hard before clearing his throat, "would you also like me to grab the antidote for the broad? I think Raditz may have given her too much of that -"

"For _fuck's_ sake, Nappa! She's practically dying over there on the floor, so what do you think?"

Nappa bit the inside of his lip while contemplating the prince's rhetorical question, infuriating Vegeta even further.

"Yes, dumbass; fetch the antidote to give the woman some damned relief. After that, bring Raditz directly to my chambers. Now go!"

Nappa obliged with a quick nod and disappeared from the cell, to Vegeta's satisfaction. 

"I swear that buffoon has no sense of critical thinking," he grumbled to himself, though the sound of a faint whimper from the floor grabbed his attention. 

He shifted his gaze back to Bulma, who had now been laying on her side with her eyes closed in deep concentration. He sighed under his breath as he could no longer resist the urge to study her appealing features; soft, porcelain skin with fierce blue hair and eyes that were complimented by long lashes. Her slender body still clad in her night club attire, sans her leather boots, revealing her curves that made his heart race, though he felt apprehensive seeing her out of sorts like this. Vegeta closed his eyes and harrumphed in an effort to force away his unprecedented, foreign thoughts and feelings while rubbing his temple in perplexity. On the other hand...

She was a stunning and fascinating specimen, he had to admit. Not only did her beautiful features intrigue him, but also her intellect, strong will and wit. If he hadn't known any better, she could almost pass as a female Saiyan with a few slight differences in appearance and the obvious lack of physical strength, he concluded as he opened his eyes and exhaled through his nostrils.

With another whimper breaking his train of thought, Vegeta quickly surveyed the area and huffed, swiftly swooping Bulma up from the floor and into his sturdy arms. He'd be damned if, the Gods forbid, the Earthling's body could not handle the sedative that Raditz had so irresponsibly given her too much of. Bulma struggled to keep her eyes open, though she was able to steal a quick glimpse of her kidnapper's alarmed facial expression and notices how gently he held onto her. After one soft smile crept across her lips that had turned an unnatural shade of purple, Bulma's eyes slowly closed as she fainted in Vegeta's arms, her limbs dangling like a doll.

The Saiyan came to a sudden halt to inspect the woman thoroughly, ensuring she was still breathing and feeling sick to his stomach as he noticed her heart rate slowly begin to decrease. In one quick movement, he gripped Bulma's limp body tighter and marched through the hall with a steady pace, remaining stone-faced as he rounded the corner and approached the medical unit where, to his utter disgust, Nappa was no where to be found.

"Kloo; the antidote for the CS sedative, over there by the cabinet."

"What about it?" Kloo, the medical specialist on the ship, asked foolishly before noticing the very ill woman in Vegeta's arms, his eyes widening at her declining appearance and shuffling over to the cabinet. "Grabbing it now. Also, er, I'm not thrilled to be the one to tell you this, but Nappa just -"

"Where the _fuck_ is he?" Vegeta interrupted through a bellow, his onyx eyes somehow even darker as he narrowed them at a petrified Kloo.

"H-he just left, sir. I believe he said that Lord Frieza had requested an audience with him and Raditz," Kloo answered nervously. 

_"What?"_ Vegeta's eyes nearly bulged out of his skull as the revelation that he hadn't been wearing his scouter over the course of the last few hours, and likely missing a transmission from the tyrannical emperor, suddenly occurred to him. 

Bulma began to stir in Vegeta's arms, and she feebly reached her hand up to his face, startling the Saiyan as her eyes fluttered, uttering out a soft, "Y-Yamcha?"

"I am _not_ fucking Yamcha," Vegeta snapped as he adjusted his grip on her and snatched the antidote from Kloo's shaky hands, Bulma simultaneously passing back out as he pushed past the doctor to gently place Bulma down onto the exam table. 

"I'm sorry, Prince-"

"Make sure you monitor her vitals. They're dropping," Vegeta ordered sternly as he pulled the oxygen cylinder closer and placed the mask over Bulma's face that was wet with perspiration. He ripped open the plastic bag carrying the antidote, quickly removing the cap to the syringe and giving the tip of the needle a few flicks before administering the injection into her side. 

"I'll keep a close eye on her. Rest assured that she's in good hands," Kloo confirmed calmly as Vegeta stared down intently at Bulma, unintentionally allowing himself to show weakness in front of the doctor.

Kloo slowly approached the Saiyan, carefully placing a hand on the warrior's shoulder and giving him a half smile. "She's going to be alright, Vegeta. I can take it from here."

Vegeta retracted his shoulders reactively and took a step back before exhaling in exasperation, though nodding silently as he began to relax. He peered over at Kloo out of the corner of his eye and then shifted his gaze to steal one last glimpse of the blue haired beauty prior to heading towards the door. 

Abruptly stopping infront of the exit with his back faced to Kloo, Vegeta balled his fists instinctively. "If you share the details of this interaction with anyone..."

Kloo stared at the back of Vegeta's head before nodding at the implication. "Understood."

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Vegeta advised and vanished from the room before Kloo could even answer, the Saiyan racing to Frieza's chambers desperately as he shoved through employees and other captives out in the hall who had been in his way, hoping the emperor would be caught in a decent mood.


	3. Desire

"Ah, Prince Vegeta; nice of you to stop by, however your appearance is a bit unexpected," a sophisticated voice with regal nature greeted the panting Saiyan as his dark lips curled into a smug smile. The small yet terrifying emperor adjusted in his thrown before glancing down at Vegeta's softly trembling hands, their sudden movement just enough for the tyrant to detect suspicion.

"Very well, then; please join your simian friends over there," Frieza pointed at Nappa and Raditz kneeling before him, chuckling darkly before abruptly putting his laughter to an end. He pursed his lips as he deadpanned Vegeta with a murderous glare, reminding the prince of what death truly looks like. "Though, do keep in mind that the next time you barge into my quarters without warning, it indeed will be your last. Prince of _monkeys_ or not."

"My apologies, Lord Frieza," Vegeta bit back his pride and knelt before the emperor, clenching his teeth in silence. 

"Splendid. Now, as you were saying, Nappa," Frieza pressed on, flicking his tail curiously against his thrown before settling back in.

Nappa swallowed hard as he felt Vegeta's side glare burning a hole into him, a single bead of sweat rolling down his forehead as he continued. "R-right, my lord. I wanted to give you an update on our newest captive."

"Proceed."

"Well, she has excellent potential. You see, she and her father are actually really smart. They're, like, scientists or some shit. Plus, she's a stripper, so she could provide us with _other_ services; know what I mean?" Nappa snickered at his own implication and gently nudged Vegeta with his elbow, the prince immediately tensing his muscles and his face hardening as he glared down at Frieza's feet, determining he would break his comrade's ribs as soon as they were out of Frieza's sight.

The Icejin raised an eyebrow incredulously to Vegeta, taking note of the Saiyan's unsubtle reaction to Nappa's report, though brushing it off as he flicked his tail and sighed with dissatisfaction. "Vegeta, please remind me how you're able to deal with this ignoramus every day."

The prince held his glare to the floor but allowed a snigger to escape from his lips, "I find myself asking the same question most days. You tend to get used to it over time."

The Icejin shifted his narrowed eyes to Nappa and flicked his tail impatiently, "This information does not interest me in the slightest, Nappa. Additionally, what am I to do with an ecdysiast?"

"A _what?_ She's not a dentist, she's a -"

"Shut the fuck up," Raditz muttered and punched Nappa's arm.

"Ow! The fuck was that for?"

"Enough!" Frieza hammered his fist down to the arm of the thrown, Vegeta raising his head punctually to meet the enraged emperor's glare while Nappa and Raditz froze. "You two dunces have wasted enough of my time with such inconsequential information. Why don't you just put an end to the Earthling's miserable life and resume the search for _actual_ potential, before I get too bored of that lackluster planet and prematurely eradicate it."

"No!" Vegeta interjected unexpectedly, the two other Saiyans shooting a warning look in his direction as the prince cleared his throat sheepishly. "I mean, we cannot dispose of her _yet."_

"Are you defying me, _Prince?"_ Frieza challenged with apparent skepticism in his voice while Vegeta bowed his head down.

"My apologies for the outburst, Lord Frieza. Nappa is _partially_ correct, though. The Earth woman does have potential to be useful, truly," Vegeta urged with conviction. 

"Doubtful," Frieza sighed and rolled his eyes. "Do inform me of your source of truth for such an assertion."

"Upon reviewing her credentials due to the nature of the situation, I've found that she is in fact an engineer, and an exceptional one at that. She's an heiress of Capsule Corporation, which is the most influential, wealthy and prestigious company on Earth; meaning she's more than qualified to help with fixing, crafting and enhancing our weaponry and pods."

Frieza remained unphased and yawned as Raditz nodding in agreement caught his attention. 

"Yeah, Vegeta's right," Raditz added nonchalantly, "plus, we're holding her as collateral to get her mate to pay us back and settle his debts. If we kill her now, he might become unmotivated or do something stupid. And to Vegeta's point, we could use her other skills, and not the skills that this bozo was referring to," Raditz nodded his head in Nappa's direction, the larger Saiyan rolling his eyes in response. 

"Precisely. We could eliminate them both after we've been paid, but the Earth woman may actually prove to be useful," Vegeta added, his eyes darkening and a hint of nausea waving over him before moving his hardening glare to Frieza.

Frieza narrowed his eyes as he surveyed the prince with scrutiny, observing his abnormal behaviors and movements. Nappa and Raditz shifted their gaze over to Vegeta and Frieza's intense glowering, the tension in the room growing thicker as the pair's glare at one another never relented. The silence was nearly deafening, though Vegeta's pride would never allow for him to capitulate.

After a few more moments had passed, Frieza leaned back in his thrown and smirked. "Vegeta, have you developed some sort of odd fixation with this Earthling?"

"Absolutely not," Vegeta growled. "She means nothing to me; I just want to ensure payment is received and that we're taking advantage of our resources and opportunities. I will kill her myself after the settlement, should that be what you desire."

Frieza raised an eyebrow, "interesting proposition."

Vegeta curled his lip before exhaling, attempting to calm his anger while Frieza snickered. 

"It's settled, then. Once all debts are paid, you will execute them both," Frieza ordered with a sinister smile.

"Consider it done," Vegeta coldly confirmed before swiftly standing up and turning to face the exit.

"One last thing," Frieza called out as Vegeta came to a sudden halt, balling his fists in rage as he felt the emperor's eyes glued to the back of his head. "I want you to make _her_ suffer."

Vegeta clenched his jaw and felt his blood boil before slowly nodding. "Understood...my lord."

"Very good. And be sure that Tweedledee and Tweedledumbass over there are also present," Frieza answered with a wicked chuckle that quickly turned into a boisterous laugh, as Nappa and Raditz pursed their lips, sensing the prince's increasing disaffection with the Frieza Force, though specifically with Frieza himself. 

The Icejin's menacing laughter rang and resonated in Vegeta's ears long after he left the tyrant's chambers, to head back to the medical unit to check on the Earthling whom he had _absolutely no_ interest in.

* * *

Bulma's ocean eyes slowly fluttered open as the sound of faint chatter and bickering out in the hallway had awoken her. She recognized one man's distinct voice sounding nettled, attempting to rack her brain of the previous events leading up to now, the memories still a bit hazy however processing nonetheless. Bulma carefully moved her head to observe her surroundings, perplexed upon realizing she had been strapped down to a medical bed and hooked up to various beeping monitors and an oxygen tank. 

She tugged at the restraints around her wrists and and ankles and sighed, though much to the heiress's relief, Bulma noticed her incessant and unbearable nausea had finally vanished. With one quick breath, she cleared her throat and tugged at the restraints even harder.

"H-hello? Can someone please help me?" Bulma called out in a muffled voice, the conversation in the hallway immediately silenced by the Earth woman's unexpected awakening. 

Bulma focused on the closed door, listening intently until she suddenly gasped at the sound of a boot stomping down hard.

"Kloo, you will do _no_ such thing, damn it!" A gruff voice advised the doctor in the hallway, in a louder than intended whisper. "I don't care what that autocratic lizard ordered you to do. You will release her now or suffer the consequences."

"Yes, sir," Kloo obliged through a shaky voice while Bulma furrowed her brow and anticipated their entrance.

The door suddenly flung open and Bulma widened her eyes as her kidnapper stood only a few feet away from her. She began to wriggle under the restraints, calling for help under the oxygen mask as the doctor scurried over to her.

"Miss Briefs, please try not to panic," Kloo uttered calmly while Vegeta held his charcoal eyes to Bulma's and proceeded to approach her. 

"Stay the fuck away from me, you animal!" Bulma cried out as Vegeta now stood merely inches from her, never breaking his gaze.

"Miss Briefs - "

"Get this shit off of me," Bulma growled as she writhed in panic, turning her head to the side of her pillow to push the oxygen mask down her face, successfully getting it below her chin.

"Earth woman, the more you struggle, the more difficult this will be," Vegeta warned, earning a glob of Bulma's saliva spat into his face in response. 

The Saiyan balled his fists as a surge of ki angrily ran down his body and straight to his hands, though immediately diminishing as he caught a brief glimpse of raw fear in Bulma's eyes, which was typically masked by her 'tough girl' facade. He had to admit, the Earthling's ability to keep a brave face regardless of the situation was one of her many qualities that attracted him to her.

"You make me sick," Bulma muttered through gritted teeth. "Why don't you just kill me now? Because I assure you that I will _not_ stop struggling, asshole."

Vegeta clicked his tongue as he crossed his arms. "You're so dramatic. Has anyone ever told you that?"

"Has anyone ever told _you_ that you're a narcissistic asshole?" Bulma spat while Vegeta rolled his eyes, raising his hand up to Kloo.

Kloo silently nodded at the indication and removed the oxygen mask, and then removed the restraints from Bulma's ankles. The blue haired beauty immediately kicked her legs and bucked up her hips in an effort to escape, however her sloppy efforts quickly failed as Vegeta took a step forward. 

"Bad idea," he tsked. 

In one swift movement, Vegeta wrapped his arm around the woman's trim waist and lifted her body with ease as Kloo removed the restraints from Bulma's wrists simultaneously. The prince tossed her body over his shoulder and charged through the doors and into the hallway, maintaining a menacing glare to avoid any potential contact with others.

"Let me go!" Bulma kicked and yelled, Vegeta remaining totally unphased and moving forward until arriving at Bulma's cell.

He pulled open the door and gently dropped her onto the floor before immediately slamming the door shut, Bulma barely having the chance to comprehend that she was no longer in motion and was now laying on the ground. She let out an agitated growl before springing up onto her feet and running to the door, pounding and kicking it vigorously.

"Let me the fuck out of here!" She bellowed, continuing to bang on the door until eventually tiring herself out. Bulma exhaled with exasperation before turning her back against the door and slowly sliding down to the floor in defeat. 

"I'm going to die in here," Bulma muttered to herself, lowering her head and staring down at the floor before pulling her knees to her chest.

"You're not going to die."

Bulma held her gaze to the floor, contemplating a response to her kidnapper on the other side of the door. She was exhausted, but she wasn't ready to give up just yet.

"You're really going to keep me locked up like an animal until Yamcha is able to pay you?"

"Correct," Vegeta responded on the other side, also sitting on the floor with his back leaned against the door and his arms crossed.

Bulma sighed and leaned back against the door, "so, how much does he owe you?"

"1.5 million zeni."

"Fucking A," Bulma breathed out, glancing down at the diamond ring around her finger. She inhaled and exhaled steadily before gently resting the back of her head against the door. "I knew he was too good to be true."

Vegeta furrowed his brow, "what do you mean?"

"I'm like a scrub magnet, I swear. Every single guy I meet turns out to be a complete piece of shit. I'm assuming if he got himself wrapped up in whatever mess he's in with someone like _you,_ then he's got to be a scumbag."

"Excuse me?" Vegeta growled. "Woman, you haven't a damn clue who I am and what I am capable of."

"Please, do tell me who you are. I'm on the edge of my seat here," Bulma guffawed.

Vegeta immediately sprung to his feet and pulled the door open, sending the blue haired beauty backwards. He carefully stepped over her and grabbed her ankles to pull her back in before promptly closing the door.

"The fuck are you - "

"Listen to me, Earth woman," Vegeta responded through gritted teeth, lowering himself to level with her as wide blue eyes stared up at him. "I am _Prince_ Vegeta, and as I've previously advised during your pathetic ill state, I am the Prince of all Saiyans. And I know you know what it means to be a Saiyan to some extent, but do try to wrap your brain around the fact that I possess the power and capabilities to end your entire world in a matter of seconds."

"Well, _Vegeta,_ I'd certainly like to see you try," Bulma challenged the prince with a glare as she slowly rose to her feet, taking a step forward and locking her eyes to his, though finding her eyes wandering down the prince's muscular body, admiring his physique and dominant stance. She suddenly held her breath as an uncertain feeling of attraction unexpectedly came over her.

"Don't test me, woman," Vegeta warned, crossing his arms to his chest and narrowing his eyes at Bulma who had now taken one more slow step forward, noticing her face visibly softening much to the Saiyan's confusion. 

Vegeta felt his palms begin to sweat as Bulma took one last step forward, closing the space left between them. 

"What are you doing?" Vegeta asked with skepticism, his heart beginning to beat a little faster as Bulma looked up at him intently through her long lashes and let out a miniscule snicker. "What the fuck is so funny?"

"Do I make you nervous?" Bulma purred, carefully placing her hand on the Saiyan's breast plate and sliding it down to the edge of the armor, glancing up at him with alluring eyes. 

"What? Of course not. What kind of question -"

"Do you find me attractive?" Bulma interrupted, running her index finger along the edge of his armor, the Saiyan going completely rigid as her finger made its way to his abdomen. 

"I'm not participating in this foolish game," Vegeta grabbed her wrist to pull her hand away, though coming to an abrupt stop as he noticed her intoxicating scent of strawberries and seduction. Vegeta held her wrist in place and stared incredulously at the Earthling before him, observing her soft features carefully. 

Bulma cleared her throat and lowered her arm, taking his hand that was still wrapped around her wrist and gently pulling free from his grip. In exchange, she gingerly took hold of his gloved hand, Vegeta slightly wincing away from her soft touch, though deciding to allow her to take his hand. 

She gazed up at him with magnetic, lusting eyes, opening the prince's hand and placing his open palm to her chest. She licked her lips before sliding his hand down to her full breasts.

"Do you want me, Vegeta?" Bulma mused, reaching for his free hand and placing it on her hip, Vegeta instinctively moving his hand down to her ass and gripping as she snickered. "Tell me."

"Tell you what?" Vegeta grumbled while Bulma released his hand that remained on her chest and wrapped her arms around the Saiyan's neck. 

"Tell me you want me," Bulma challenged, bringing her lips to the Saiyan's ear, "tell me how badly you want to fuck me right now."

"Must you be so vulgar?" Vegeta responded under his breath, removing his hand from her chest and wrapping both arms around her waist, resting his hands on the small of her back and pulling her closer. "I..."

"Say it," she whispered, starting to kiss his neck, a foreign feeling to the Saiyan as he felt his body begin to tremble.

"I want," Vegeta contemplated, though his thoughts were interrupted by Bulma pausing her kisses and carefully walking him backwards until he stopped at the edge of her bed.

Bulma gently pushed him to sit down on the bed and immediately straddled him, Vegeta reactively pulling her closer as the blue haired beauty's face was now inches from his. She glanced down as she felt his hardening erection beneath her, smirking and bringing her gaze back to Vegeta.

Vegeta felt his body tightening, unable to resist her seductive efforts, hating how vulnerable she had made him feel. He was never submissive to anything or anyone, and he wasn't about to start now. With that, Vegeta released a low growl as he lifted Bulma up, holding her body to his as her legs instinctively wrapped around him, walking over to the wall and gently pressing her back against it. Vegeta's lips lingered a centimeter away from hers, suddenly contemplating his actions. 

Before he could think any longer, Bulma hungrily pressed her lips to his, Vegeta reciprocating the kiss as she parted her to allow for her tongue to meet his. The blue haired beauty reached her hands up to cup the Saiyan's face and deepened the kiss while Vegeta pushed her harder against the wall wantonly.

Bulma let out a soft moan, awakening animalistic feelings in the prince as he began to kiss and suck on her neck with fervor.

The sound of footsteps in the hall startled them both, Vegeta instantly dropping Bulma to the ground and immediately heading to the door, his heart coming to a complete halt as he listened for the footsteps to continue past Bulma's cell. After a few more unsettling moments, he heard the footsteps dissappear around the corner, letting out a sigh of relief before glancing at Bulma who was still panting. 

Vegeta looked over the Earthling once more before grinding his teeth and muttering "damn it" under his breath, swiftly turning to face the door and grabbing the doorknob. 

"Wait, Vegeta," Bulma said feebly, the Saiyan tensing at the sound of her voice saying his name, holding his gaze to the door.

"What?" 

"I... don't know what just happened or what came over me. I have a boyfriend who I really like and shouldn't have done that."

"Tch," Vegeta muttered and swallowed hard, "your eyes and body seemed to have told me otherwise."

"Fuck you," Bulma scoffed.

Vegeta snickered darkly, "you sure wanted to."

Before Bulma could respond, the prince pulled the door open and left the cell before slamming the door shut behind him. The blue haired beauty stood still in confusion, silently trying to determine what the hell just happened or what had possessed her to attempt to seduce her kidnapper, who had successfully managed to give her emotional whiplash. Bulma suddenly shrugged it off and sat down on her bed, wondering how she was going to get out of this place, unable to stop herself from replaying the recent memories of a certain prince's hands all over her...

Vegeta stood silently in front of the door for a few more moments until he had finally calmed his nerves, determining he was utterly and irrevocably fucked before striding off to his quarters to get some sleep.


	4. The Negotiation

"Psst," Bulma whispered through the door, recognizing the sound of specific heavy foot steps thudding down on the metal surface outside of her cell. 

She hadn't been out of the tiny prison since her visit to the medical unit, however that was three days ago. Bulma also hadn't seen or heard from Vegeta since then, though she couldn't deny that her dreams were often violated by his presence, each dream more vivid than the last. At night, she found herself tracing her fingers against her creamy skin, closing her eyes and feeling Vegeta's strong hands all over her body, craving his touch, hearing his sighs, _needing_ him.

But that was fucked up, she would think to herself, determining it was a one-time thing due to pure delusion on her part, and that she was in a happily committed relationship. Although, her boyfriend had yet to attempt making any contact with her, let alone being the sole reason for why she was caught up in this mess. It wasn't entirely wrong for her to be drawn to someone else, even if that someone was a predator, able to eliminate her at any given moment...right?

"Hey. Hey, you," Bumla whispered against the door, hearing the footsteps come to an abrupt stop.

"Are you talking to me, little lady?" Nappa asked on the other side of the door, his choice of words infuriating Bulma as she believed herself to be a strong, independent and capable woman; not some poor damsel in distress. Though, her anger soon passed as she huffed at the irony.

"Yes, you!" She confirmed in a louder whisper before clearing her throat. "I know you're probably not supposed to do any favors for me, or even interact with me for that matter, but I'm _really_ hungry. I think the guards might have forgotten to leave dinner for me, and I skipped lunch because I wasn't feeling well."

Nappa chewed on the inside of his cheek in contemplation, peeking around the corner before lowering his voice.

"I'm really sorry, lady. I could get into big trouble; shit, I could get killed, which would probably result in your untimely death as well."

"I understand," Bulma sighed in defeat as the sound of her stomach gurgling caught Nappa's attention. 

The large Saiyan turned on his heel in the direction of the armoury, pausing for a moment as a war broke out in his head, understanding the potential consequences if he were to get caught. Nappa took one step forward, though his heart sank as he heard Bulma sniffling on the other side of the door. He may have been a killing machine and ruthless brute, but deep down he still had a heart.

"Fuck it," Nappa muttered under his breath and glanced over his shoulder to make sure the coast was clear before taking a deep breath and stepping closer to the door. "Ok, I'm running to the mess hall to grab you something. Will a sandwich do it for you?"

"Yes; _fuck_ yes, a sandwich will do just fine," Bulma replied eagerly through tears, feeling relieved to know her hunger would soon be satisfied. "Thank you so much, _Nappa,_ right?"

"Don't mention it," Nappa replied awkwardly as he felt his cheeks turn a light shade of pink. "Yeah, that's what they call me at least."

"I thought so. I recognized the sound of your foot steps and matched it to what I've heard others calling you when you walk by. I can also tell when your comrade walks by; Raditz, I believe, is his name. But his footsteps are a little more aggressive-sounding than yours."

Nappa furrowed his brow, impressed by her observations. Not wanting to waste anymore time, he nodded to himself. 

"Alright, I'll be right back."

"I'll try not to wander off too far," Bulma failed to hide her sardonic tone before dragging herself over to the bed and plopping down onto the stiff mattress, wiping away her tears and waiting for the large Saiyan to return. 

Nappa anxiously shuffled to the mess hall, noticing Raditz stuffing his face in the corner of the room, trying to avoid him as he stealthily snuck into the kitchen to grab one of the many sandwiches that were being prepared for tomorrow. He peeked out of the kitchen door to see Raditz wiping his face and walking over to the trash bin to dump his scraps before walking toward the exit, Nappa assuming he was on his way back to his room for the night.

The large Saiyan snagged the sandwich, hiding it in his armor and opened the kitchen door to quickly head back to the prisoner. As Nappa made it through the door to exit the mess hall, he was suddenly grabbed by the chest and pushed against the wall with unexpected brute force. 

"The fuck!" Nappa bellowed as Raditz held him against the wall, his eyes following the sandwich that dropped to the floor.

"Why are you sneaking around like you've got some sort of hidden agenda? Don't think I didn't see you in there being sketchy as fuck," Raditz pressed him into the wall harder, taking note of Nappa holding his gaze to the sandwich and raising an eyebrow incredulously. "What are you smuggling sandwiches for?"

"I felt bad for her," Nappa instantly confessed, feeling Raditz loosen his grip before pushing him back. "She was hungry, and so sad, and crying, I think...I dunno, I felt like an asshole."

Raditz widened his eyes and ran a hand through his long hair. "Fucking A, Nappa. Do you realize what could happen to you if anyone were to find out? You'd be killed on the spot!"

"I know," Nappa muttered as he reached down to retrieve the sandwich and placed it back into his armor. "But it's not _her_ fault that her boyfriend's a dickhead. She shouldn't have to starve."

"Jesus. Don't tell me you've bargained with her or something for her _other_ services," Raditz lowered his voice.

"No, though in hindsight, that probably would have been a better idea. Would have made it a little more worth it."

Raditz glared at Nappa momentarily before suddenly glancing around the empty hall, releasing an exasperated sigh and shaking his head definitively. "And now you've made me a goddamned accomplice. Let's go."

"Wait, you want to come with me? Why?"

"Because, fuck Frieza and the whole fucking Frieza Force; that's why. I know Vegeta's at his wit's end, too, but I probably wouldn't announce we're helping to nourish the captive," Raditz chuckled darkly before holding up his index finger to indicate he'd be back, rushing back into the mess hall to grab an apple and a water, and returning immediately to Nappa.

Nappa smirked before gently nudging Raditz's arm, "you fuckin' softie."

"Hey, fuck off. I'm not the one who caught feels and let some woman easily cry her way into making me risk my own life for nothing in return," Raditz teased as Nappa held up his middle finger before the two bolted to Bulma's cell.

Once outside of the door, Raditz reached out his hand for the sandwich, "you stay here and be the lookout. I'll give the Earth woman the food."

"Deal," Nappa agreed as he gave his comrade the sandwich and crossed his arms, Raditz quickly unlocking the door and dashing inside the cell before closing the door. 

Bulma sat up in her bed and gasped, her face turning pale as Raditz slowly approached her.

"Earth woman, we were able to get you some food, but don't expect this to be a recurring thing," Raditz cleared his throat as he sheepishly handed her the sandwich, apple and water. 

Bulma visibly relaxed and smiled softly, nodding before accepting the food. Raditz smiled back as he noticed a glimmer of gratitude on her exhausted face.

"Thank you," she said as she began to stuff her face, Raditz chuckling in response. 

"Sheesh, you sure can eat for a tiny little thing."

Bulma swallowed before glaring up at the Saiyan. "Do you think that because I'm locked up in here that I'm some sort of helpless weakling? Because let me tell you, Fabio, that I could kick your fucking ass if I wanted to."

Raditz stared at her crimson cheeks, quickly shuddering at her death glare before laughter suddenly escaped from his lips. "You know, Blue; I actually don't doubt that. You kind of scare me, if I'm being honest."

"Good! You should be afraid," Bulma threatened before taking another large bite and finishing her sandwich. 

Raditz shook his head before glancing over at her and admiring her beauty. He had to admit, she was undeniably breathtaking.

"What's your name, Blue?" Raditz asked as Bulma took a long, desperate swig of her water and panted after crushing the bottle. 

"I'm Bulma. You must be Raditz," she said through breaths, reaching for the apple and taking a bite. 

"Sure am. You know, Nappa and I could get into a shitload of trouble for this."

Bulma slowed her chewing before glancing down and nodding silently. 

"Let's keep this a secret then, ok?" Raditz raised an eyebrow as Bulma side-eyed him like an abused animal, though eventually nodding.

Raditz smiled sincerely before reaching out for her hand, Bulma cautiously placing her hand into his as Raditz lifted it to his lips to place a soft kiss on the top of her shaky hand.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Bulma."

"Likewise," Bulma agreed in confusion, wondering what his motives were.

The Saiyan gently released her hand and turned to face the door before Bulma took a breath. 

"H-hey, Raditz?"

"Yeah?" He spun around a little too eagerly.

"Did you guys confiscate my phone, by chance? And if so, would there be any way I could maybe have it?" Bulma asked feebly, her demeanor doing a complete 180.

Raditz looked at her carefully, knowing exactly where her phone was as he finally nodded. 

"I'll bring it to our next dinner date, babe," Raditz teased with a wink.

Bulma rolled her eyes but chucked in amusement. "Tomorrow night?"

"That anxious to see me, huh?"

"I know, we'd better slow things down or else we could end up married by the end of the week," Bulma laughed as Raditz smiled and spun back around to head to the door. 

"That wouldn't be the worst gig ever," he said confidently before exiting the cell and locking it. Bulma rolled her eyes, though deep down, she was relieved to have potentially made two new friends.

* * *

"Bulma, this is about the one trillionth message I've left you. Please call me back when you can. I'm so sorry I got you into this shit; I promise I'll get you out of it soon enough," Yamcha exhaled before ending the call, closing his eyes, completely at a loss.

He shuffled to the kitchen where Goku and Gohan were stuffing their faces, clearing his throat to interrupt them. Bulma's mother, Panchy brought over another round of pancakes for the hungry Saiyans and smiled, completely oblivious to Yamcha's distress. 

"Oh, Yamcha! Why don't you join the boys after your business call and have some pancakes? They're banana chocolate chip, your favorite!" She insisted, pulling out a chair and walking toward the sink to start the dishes. 

Yamcha sighed but obliged, plopping down onto the chair before shooting a glare to Goku.

"Where does she think Bulma is?" Yamcha whispered as Goku took a bite of a pancake, both men wincing as Panchy began to sing and struck an unexpected high note.

"In the lab," Goku answered matter-of-factly with a full mouth as Gohan grimaced at the sight. 

"For _five_ days, Goku? She really thinks Bulma hasn't left the lab in five days?"

"Well sure! It is Panchy that we're talking about here," Goku reasoned and Yamcha eventually nodded in agreement. 

"What can we do to get her out of there? I have no idea where she is. All I know is that those douchebag loan sharks took her," Yamcha said through gritted teeth and balled his fists.

"Goku, I have an idea," a deep voice said from the corner of the room, startling everyone as Piccolo snickered and joined the men at the table.

"My goodness, Piccolo! You scared the bejesus out of me!" Panchy exclaimed before turning back around to the dishes and continuing to sing.

"Hey, Piccolo!" Gohan called out. "I'm glad _you_ have an idea. These two are hopeless," Gohan chuckled, Piccolo instantly joining in.

"Goku, didn't you learn the instant transmission technique, where you could pinpoint her energy and travel to her location, well, instantly?" Piccolo asked as he crossed his arms, curling his lip in disgust at Goku stuffing more food into his face.

"I sure did," Goku mumbled before swallowing, "but I haven't mastered it just yet. Still need some practice."

"Who took her exactly? Anyone we know?" Gohan asked, Goku and Piccolo turning their curious gaze over to Yamcha. 

"There were three of them; they're part of the Frieza Force," Yamcha answered sternly. 

Piccolo pursed his lips, "don't tell me that Vegeta involved."

"He was. He and his soldiers took her right from the club. Vegeta told me that he'd kill her if I wasn't able to come up with 1.5 million zeni in one month."

"1.5 million zeni!" Goku and Gohan blurted out in unison, spitting pancake out of their mouths.

"Correct," Yamcha confirmed.

"Look, Vegeta's no joke. And neither is the Frieza Force. I've unfortunately dealt with them back on Namek, and luckily they left semi-peacefully, but they didn't hesitate to wipe outbsome of the other Namekians who didn't cooperate," Piccolo balled his fists as he continued. "We need to have a solid plan if we're even going to think about trying to rescue Bulma."

Yamcha shot a worried look over to Piccolo before nodding. "Alright Goku, do you think you could train some more to master instant transmission, and then we can get Bulma the fuck out of there?"

Goku furrowed his brow before closing his eyes and placing his index and middle finger to his forehead, his face masked with deep concentration. The three men stared at him skeptically before Goku's eyes suddenly flung open. 

"I think I found her."

* * *

Vegeta tossed his body suit onto the floor and paced back and forth in his room, clad in only his boxers, and unable to suppress his self-loathing for leaving Bulma locked up. It had been five days since he made any attempt to approach her cell, perturbed about what kind of foolish thing he'd do next out of his lack of self-control, Bulma being the only living thing to ever distract him like this.

After a few more back and forths, Vegeta sat down on his bed and glared at the door, his thoughts utterly consuming him. He knew that if he even showed a glimpse of interest in her, Frieza would somehow find out and strike him down. And as powerful as Vegeta was, he was aware of his strength in comparison to Frieza's, which was unfortunately not even close.

Vegeta sighed, laying down and closing his eyes in defeat, deciding to let sleep take him until they would land back on Earth in the morning, to continue seeking out potential business and military opportunities before finally blasting away the planet. 

As he felt his body begin to ease up and relax, he opened his eyes to see a shock of blue hair and aqua eyes looking up at him curiously from the foot of his bed, beckoning him seductively with her index finger. Vegeta glanced down at the voluptuous woman, her breasts nearly spilling out of her low cut tank top as she snickered darkly. 

"Woman, how the hell did you get in here?" Vegeta whispered, glancing around the room instinctively to ensure they were alone.

Bulma ignored the flustered Saiyan's question and slowly crawled forward until she reached his thighs, thoughtfully running her soft hands up them to meet his chiseled abs before moving them back down his body and resting her hands on his v line, Vegeta's breath hitching in response. 

She looked up at him through long lashes, smirking as her hands met the waistband of Vegeta's boxers, his member clearly at attention for her. Teasing him, Bulma gently tugged at the waistband before slipping one hand in. No longer able to sit still, Vegeta sat up and pulled her face to his, their lips instantly colliding for a hungry kiss that he'd admittedly been craving.

As Bulma deepened the kiss, she slowly started to stroke his straining cock, relishing the soft moans that he made through passionate kisses.

"Do you like that?" Bulma murmured, slightly picking up the pace with each pump as she kissed Vegeta's neck with fervor, leaving behind bite marks as if she were marking her territory, driving the Saiyan nearly over the edge. 

"Fuck," Vegeta let out a breathy moan before taking her by surprise and turning her onto her back.

He moved down Bulma's body and pulled down her shorts, making sure to kiss every part of her on his way down until he reached her center, devilishly smirking up at her after noticing how wet she was through her panties. Vegeta pushed her thighs up and rested them on his shoulders before licking his lips.

"You look fucking delicious, woman."

"Shh, be quiet!"

"Huh?" Vegeta mumbled as his eyes fluttered open, disgusted with the feeling of his seed spilled all over his hand in his pants, disappointed that he was only dreaming. 

"Shut the fuck up."

Vegeta furrowed his brow and immediately sat up, listening to the voices outside of his room. He got out of bed and quickly threw on a fresh pair of boxers and sweatpants before placing his ear against the door.

"Will you two idiots hurry up!"

Vegeta's eyes widened, recognizing that voice as he heard it merely moments ago in his dream. He immediately pulled the door open to find Bulma, Nappa and Raditz frozen in place only a few feet away.

"What the ever-loving _hell_ is going on?" Vegeta snapped, noticing Bulma's eyes light up once she met his gaze.

"H-hey, uh, Vegeta," Nappa trembled, holding Bulma's cellphone in one hand with a sandwich in the other. 

"Raditz, care to explain?" Vegeta sneered, though the four of them suddenly heard a door open close by. 

The prince reactively grabbed onto Bulma to pull her into his room and quietly closed the door before placing a hand over her mouth, a rapid shot of panic coursing through his body. 

"What the hell is up with all the ruckus?" Captain Ginyu asked, "don't you know I need my beauty sleep before we land?"

"Sorry about that," Raditz chimed in smoothly, running a hand through his hair. "We were patrolling and thought we saw a rat."

"Are you two dweebs really afraid of rats?" Captain Ginyu snickered and crossed his arms.

"Terrified," Nappa confirmed as calmly as he could. "They're diseased little fuckers."

Captain Ginyu raised an eyebrow before rolling his eyes.

"Keep the noise down, or the next time I won't be so generous."

"Understood," Nappa advised, feeling relief as Captain Ginyu turned around, though the relief quickly turning into trepidation as Ginyu spun back around. 

"Did I hear a female's voice out here?"

Bulma's heart dropped, feeling Vegeta's hand tighten around her mouth as his other arm wrapped around her body, carefully walking her over to his closet.

"There aren't any females currently on board," Raditz answered sternly.

"False," Ginyu pushed past the two Saiyans and stopped directly in front of Vegeta's door. "I can sense a female's presence. Although, I doubt Vegeta would be harboring the captive in his room, or harboring her at all for that matter. Can't imagine him having much patience with a woman."

Bulma trembled under Vegeta's arms, her heart beating out of her chest as he nudged her into the closet to hide. She glanced up at him with apparent dread in her eyes, but silently nodded as she quietly moved deeper into the closet, trying to stay hidden behind his clothes. 

Vegeta rubbed his face to wipe off any remaining apprehension before stepping over to his door and pulling it open.

"Captain Ginyu, to what do I owe the displeasure of this visit?" Vegeta asked coldly, Captain Ginyu peeking his head into Vegeta's room. "And at this hour, might I add. There'd better be a fucking emergency."

"No emergency; sorry to bother you, but you haven't seen a female around here, have you?" Captain Ginyu asked with skepticism in his voice. 

"Tch, you must be losing your mind, Ginyu. There's no females on board, aside from our prisoner on the opposite wing."

"Interesting," Captain Ginyu contemplated, staring into Vegeta's glare and sensing deceit. "Very well, then. I guess I'll head back to my room. But do know this, if Lord Frieza finds out about any canoodling with the captive, all of your heads will be on a platter."

Vegeta scowled as he crossed his arms to his chest. "We'll see about that."

"Perhaps we will," Ginyu smirked before nodding to the other two Saiyans. "Gentleman," he said as he walked past them and entered his room, closing the door behind him.

Vegeta instantly let out an exhale of relief and pulled Nappa and Raditz into his room.

"What the fuck were you two clowns thinking? How could you possibly be that dense?!"

"It was my fault," Bulma whispered as she emerged from the closet.

"I highly doubt it," Vegeta retorted, holding his glare to his comrades.

"Honestly, it was my fault."

Vegeta spun around to face Bulma, "woman, how could you possibly have coaxed Saiyan warriors into allowing you out of your cell?"

"Um, very easily actually," she chuckled as Nappa and Raditz rolled their eyes. "Nappa is actually a big old softie and Raditz here totally wants to get in my pants."

"What?" Vegeta's eyes nearly bulged out of his skull.

"Don't worry, I haven't fucked him... yet," Bulma teased, making Raditz's face turn a shade of crimson. 

"Wha -, you," Vegeta stammered, releasing a low growl before charging at Raditz. 

"Vegeta, relax!" Raditz whispered loudly.

The prince came to a halt and narrowed his eyes at Raditz, taking a deep breath in and out before moving a step back.

"This," Vegeta said, pointing at Bulma, "cannot happen anymore. Do you realize what could have happened if that yeppy idiot searched my room and found Bulma in my goddamned closet?"

Bulma's heart skipped a beat hearing her name come out of Vegeta's mouth, wishing she knew this was where his room was much sooner.

"Understood. We just figured that it isn't fair to her that she needs to suffer due to her douchebag boyfriend being, well, a douchebag," Raditz sighed. "Plus, fuck the Frieza Force. I'm sick of it and I'm sick of obeying Frieza's every command blindly."

Vegeta bit the inside of his lip before nodding. "As much as I agree with you, we still can't put ourselves, or _her,_ in any danger. This was utterly reckless. Now, leave her with me and head back to your rooms immediately."

"Yes, Vegeta," both Saiyans sighed before heading to the door, Raditz looking over his shoulder to steal one last glimpse of Bulma; though much to his disappointment, her eyes were fixed to the prince himself. 

With that, Raditz and Nappa left the room, quietly closing the door behind them. Once they were gone, Vegeta took another deep breath before turning around to face Bulma, zeroing in on her as he took a step in her direction. 

"Woman, have you lost your goddamned mind?" Vegeta growled. "How long have you been seducing my subordinates and sneaking around this ship?"

"I haven't seduced them, they're actually my friends now. They're truthfully just fucking dense and easy to convince," Bulma shrugged nonchalantly before walking to Vegeta's bed and sitting down. 

"Correct, however that's beside the point. You can't just go frolicking around a maniacal tyrant's ship and befriend warriors who have been ordered to invade your planet!"

"Ah, so this _is_ your ship after all," Bulma snickered, Vegeta crossing his arms with a mean scowl painted across his face, unamused at her insinuation.

"That's really what you gathered from that? This isn't my fucking ship!" Vegeta spat, sighing before rubbing his palm to his forehead and closing his eyes to level with her. 

"Woman, listen to me. Raditz, Nappa and I are part of a... planet trade organization, referred to as the Frieza Force, and we're well-known across the galaxies. The organization is run by Frieza himself, who is indeed on this ship. He is a merciless, sociopathic maniac with no remorse for killing anything or anyone that gets in his way. And we report to him, meaning you shouldn't befriend people like Nappa or Raditz."

Bulma pursed her lips and leaned back, holding her gaze to Vegeta as the wheels in her head visibly spun. She was well aware of who Frieza was, because she and her father helped with a technical initiative a while back as a private third-party vendor, assisting the Frieza Force's main tech vendor. She was instrumental in the programing enhancements for some of the Frieza Force's space crafts, which was a complete success, even the standard vendor addmiting they were impressed. However, the deal was that the vendor took the credit and Capsule Corp would receive that particular payment; thus, Frieza being completely oblivious to who the Briefs were and what their company was capable of.

"I can help you guys, you know," Bulma stated confidently. "I know who Frieza is, and I know patience is not one of his strong suits."

"How could you possibly help us?"

"I could totally replace your current tech vendor; shit, I could probably blow them out of the water blindfolded and with my hands tied behind my back. I've seen their work; your scouter, for example, has so much more potential than what they were able to program into it."

Vegeta furrowed his brow, suppressing invasive thoughts and images of Bulma tied up and blindfolded. "What are your intentions, woman?"

"I'd like to propose a negotiation," Bulma murmured, getting up from the bed and sauntering over to Vegeta, slowly bringing her hand up to his bare chest and running her fingers along his pecks. "I'll assist with tech enhancements for free, which I guarantee you that the entire Frieza Force will benefit from my efforts tremendously; but in return, I want you to bite the bullet on Yamcha's debt."

Vegeta snatched her hand and held it in place. "Are you serious? That motherfucker owes us -"

"I'm fully aware," Bulma interrupted, ripping her hand free from his vice grip and walking to the nightstand where her sandwich and phone were placed before sitting back down on the bed.

"You'd be willing to fulfill our technical needs and demands at no cost _if_ we remove your halfwit mate's debt?"

"Precisely," Bulma confirmed as she took a large bite of her sandwich and reached down for her phone, noticing the 87 voicemails from Yamacha displaying on the lock screen. a momentary feeling of guilt waved over her, though the feeling leaving as quickly as it came once Vegeta scoffed. 

"Tch, you're insane, woman."

"I'm completely sane, _man."_

Vegeta bit the inside of his cheek as he watched the intriguing human adjust her legs, opening them nonchalantly while gaging his reaction. He raised an eyebrow and cleared his throat to brush away the thoughts of ravaging her body. 

"I'll think it over. Now, let me escort you back to your cell before we both get killed," Vegeta muttered, reaching for a shirt to throw on as he waited for Bulma to finish her sandwich. 

Once she finally finished, Bulma stood up and followed Vegeta to the door, the Saiyan cracking the door open to make sure they were alone before rushing out of the room and into the hallway. He grabbed on to her wrist as he quickly shuffled past the mess hall, Bulma immediately breaking free from his grip.

"I'm not not incapacitated," she whispered, Vegeta rolling his eyes in response. 

A sudden sound of footsteps approaching them made Vegeta's heart stop. Bulma frantically searched for somewhere to hide and noticed a maintenance closet to their right, immediately grabbing onto Vegeta's hand and dragging him into the closet with her before quietly shutting the door.

"The maintenance closet? The fuck kind of hiding spot is this?" Vegeta whispered, pointing over to his favorable options, which were the armoury on the opposite side of the hall or the training room beside it.

Bulma huffed and placed a hand on her hip, "well, _sorry_ your highness for not selecting the goddamned Bahamas of hiding places, but a closet seemed more viable than an open training area or a room with fucking weapons to wipe me out with!"

"Fine. Also, what was up with you dragging me in here? You follow _my_ lead! Not the other way around."

"You know what -"

Bulma was immediately interrupted by Vegeta pulling her against his body and placing his hand over her mouth to keep her quiet as the footsteps approached the door, stopping directly in front of it.

Bulma's eyes widened in terror, the blue haired beauty beginning to quietly hyperventilate as Vegeta readily raised his free hand, preparing a ki blast attack as the doorknob suddenly turned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to thank you all for your kudos, comments and praise! It keeps me motivated to continue telling this story, and there's so much more of the story to tell.💙
> 
> xx Anomylous


	5. Stalemate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little angst, but things will defintely be heating up in the next chapter. 😉
> 
> I hope you all have a happy and safe holiday!!💙

The doorknob jiggled as Bulma and Vegeta's bodies became momentarily paralyzed, their faces turning pale and clammy as they anticipated the door opening, unsure of what awaited them. Vegeta shook away the brief feeling of uncertainty and took a protective step forward in front of Bulma, intuitively shielding her with one arm, sensing something peculiar and furrowing his brow in response. 

"What the hell kind of creature could possibly possess such power," Vegeta muttered under his breath as he scrutinized the door, unable to predict who or what was standing on the other side and immediately raising his energy to power up.

The dim light bulb in the closet started flickering and shaking rapidly as Bulma shut her eyes and tightly clutched the Saiyan's arm, burying her face into his side while the air grew thicker, electricity frantically developing in the room. 

"Vegeta, what are you -"

"Plant your feet, woman," Vegeta grunted as he continued to power up.

Bulma obliged and gripped tighter onto Vegeta, utilizing every fibre of her body to stay on the ground as loose papers began to whip around the room, losing balance gradually with each shock wave. Just before the blue haired beauty completely lost her footing upon Vegeta's energy intensifying, the door finally swung open. 

"Bulma?" an optimistic voice whispered as Vegeta charged forward at the intruder in full-force. 

"Woah, there!" Goku called out, dodging Vegeta's attack before gracefully grabbing the prince to hold him in a headlock. 

"Goku?" Bulma eased her stance and steadied her balance before cautiously walking out of the maintenance closet to get a better look. "What the... how the hell did you find me here?"

"Release me, you bastard!" Vegeta demanded a little louder than intended.

Bulma quickly rushed over to shush him and glanced up at Goku, placing a warm-hearted hand on his arm that was wrapped around Vegeta's neck.

"Goku, it's ok," she whispered, ignoring Vegeta's glowering as she continued. "You can let him go; he's cool."

"You've got it, B," Goku innocently obliged, sending an already ticked-off prince forward and onto the ground.

"You son of a bitch," Vegeta gritted through his teeth and flung to his feet as Bulma jumped in between the two Saiyans. 

"Easy, psycho," Bulma instructed with her arms spread out, Vegeta curling his lip and releasing a low growl before harrumphing and crossing his arms.

Bulma let out a quick sigh and turned her gaze to Goku. "Ok, explain to me how the fuck you got here. And where are we right now?"

"Well, I think we're in the midst of a descent," Goku shrugged nonchalantly as Bulma stared at her friend incredulously. 

"Correct. We'll be arriving to your home planet shortly," Vegeta spat, "now, who the hell are you?"

"I'm Bulma's friend, Goku!" 

"Shh," Bulma promptly hushed her friend as Goku grimaced and nodded apologetically. 

Vegeta narrowed his eyes at Goku, intently observing him before furrowing his brow in aggravation. "Your name doesn't sound like that of a true Saiyan, however you must be the Saiyan with a half-Saiyan son."

"Sure am. In fact, I was told that my 'Saiyan name' is actually Kakarot, but everyone just calls me by my Earth name," Goku answered cheerfully. "How'd you know I'm a Saiyan? Are you a Saiyan, too?"

"The woman may have shared that a friend of hers is a Saiyan, and I can sense it in your energy," Vegeta responded through a scowl, slightly puffing out his chest as he continued. "And for your information, I am the son of King Vegeta, who was the ruler of Planet Vegeta prior to the planet unfortunately being obliterated. Nonetheless, I am Prince Vegeta, the Prince of all Saiyans."

"Oh, right on! I've never met another Saiyan before, aside from my son of course; let alone a prince!"

"I've unfortunately had the displeasure of knowing two others," Vegeta snickered, relishing Goku's apparent admiration. 

"Wow, there's more Saiyans here? Are you all super strong, too?"

"Tch. What an ignorant question, Kakarot."

Goku furrowed his brow, "gee, you're the only one who's ever called me by that name."

"That's because I refuse to address you by your _Earth_ name," Vegeta narrowed his eyes at Goku, shooting a quick side eye to Bulma. "You don't see me frolicking around and asking to be called some ridiculous Earth name, like _Yamcha,_ now do you?"

Bulma's cheeks flushed and she balled her fists at the dig, Vegeta instantly smirking with satisfaction as Goku seemed unphased by the comment.

"I guess you'll just be the only one who calls me Kakarot, then! Hey, do you think that maybe some time you'd like to spar with me? You seem really strong!"

"Ha, you could never keep up with a true Saiyan Elite!"

"We'll see about that," Goku challenged confidently before Bulma stamped her foot and cleared her throat obnoxiously.

"Um, hello! Earth to Goku! Tell me how you got here already," Bulma interrupted impatiently and turned to face Vegeta, placing a hand on her hip. "You can have your bromance with Goku some other time."

"What the hell is a _bromance?"_ Vegeta roared as his face turned a shade of crimson, Bulma snickering at his reaction, settling the score.

"Right! Sorry about that, Bulma," Goku apologized as Vegeta harrumphed and looked the other way. "So, recently I learned this new technique during my visit on Yardrat called Instant Transmission. It basically gives you the ability to lock onto someone's ki and instantly transmit at the speed of light to that being's location."

"Tch, _you_ learned Instant Transmission?" Vegeta sneered, Bulma rolling her eyes and focusing back to her friend. 

"Ignore him," Bulma huffed before continuing, dismissing Vegeta clicking his tongue in frustration. "That's really neat, Goku! Did you travel here alone?"

"Yamcha, Piccolo and Gohan are actually waiting at Kame House with Krillin, Roshi and Android 18. I told them it wouldn't take me long to bring you back, so I figured they could wait there while ChiChi is cooking up a nice welcome home meal for you!"

Bulma couldn't help but chuckle at Goku's excitement despite the current circumstances, shaking her head in amusement as the sudden sound of sardonic laughter drew her attention. 

"Sounds like a fantastic plan, except you're forgetting something," Vegeta abruptly interrupted, pausing as Bulma and Goku stared back at him blankly. "The Earth woman isn't going _anywhere_ until I get paid."

"Oh, right," Goku pursed his lips and reached into his orange gi to grab an envelope, handing it over to the scowling prince. "Here you go. It's all there, I promise."

Bulma's mouth dropped to the floor as Vegeta's eyes hardened. 

"Um, Goku; how the _fuck_ did you guys acquire one million zeni in under a week?"

Vegeta opened the envelope and counted swiftly. After a few brief moments, to the prince's surprise, he concluded that all of the money was indeed there.

"Well, it's a funny story actually..." Goku answered sheepishly, placing a hand behind his head to scratch it nervously while Bulma glared at him, having an inkling that Yamcha either convinced her parents to 'lend' him the money or he did something shady to get it.

"Yamcha sort of _borrowed_ it from your parents and..."

"He did _what_ now? And you let him?" Bulma chided. 

Vegeta shook his head and drowned out their conversation as emotions waved over him like a tsunami, torn between not wanting to allow Bulma to leave for his own selfish purposes, but also remembering his conversation with Frieza and not wanting her in any potential danger. He felt his stomach churn as he glanced up at Bulma before shifting his eyes to the floor, aware that regardless there were no options that would not eventually result in her death, and possibly his.

Vegeta gripped the envelope tight and exhaled heavily, making a quick decision as his conscience got the best of him. His charcoal eyes darkened upon shooting a glare to Bulma, nausea overcoming him, though swallowing it back as he cleared his throat, failing at formulating the words he wished he could say. Instead he held his cold glare to the Earthling, feeling complete emptiness, a feeling he knew all too well.

"Get out of here," Vegeta darkly interrupted the conversation, both Bulma and Goku's eyes shifting to the prince. 

Bulma eased her stance and stared at Vegeta, expressionless, silently opening and then closing her mouth in confusion. 

"Okie dokie," Goku replied cheerfully before grabbing hold of Bulma's arm with one hand while beginning to put his index and middle finger to his forehead with the other.

"Wait!" Bulma interjected, breaking free from Goku's grip and running to Vegeta, catching the cold prince by surprise as his face slightly softened. 

Bulma swallowed hard as her hands began to tremble, holding her gaze to his, her heart pounding. "You're just going to let me go? Just like that?"

Vegeta pursed his lips and stared into Bulma's ocean eyes, losing himself more and more with each second that passed by, never actually feeling anything for anyone outside of longing for sexual relief before now. He had witnessed Raditz in a few different relationships over the years, the prince finding the concept to be sickening if the intent was not solely for procreation; but even then he hadn't encountered anyone he felt was worth procreating or exploring a romantic relationship with, until Bulma entered his life in the most unconventional way and tossed his entire world upside-down in a matter of five days. 

He glanced over at Goku and shut his eyes momentarily, exhaling in exasperation before discreetly reaching for Bulma's hand. The Saiyan slowly opened his eyes once Bulma's hand was in his, feeling her warmth electrify his entire body. Bulma brought his hand up to her cheek and struggled to hold back tears as she noticed the affliction in his dark eyes.

"Vegeta, I..."

"Go," Vegeta broke his gaze and pulled away from her before crossing his arms and holding his glare to the ground, each word cutting into Bulma deeper.

Bulma quietly sniffled, eyes calculating, unable to determine what was happening and, most importantly, why she wasn't even a little bit happy that she was finally being set free. She took a deep breath and risked taking a step closer to Vegeta as he instantly shifted his glare back to her.

"I said, get the fuck out of here. _Now."_ Vegeta growled, feeling his heart sink as he saw a brief glimpse of fear in the heiress's eyes, loathing himself more than he ever thought could be possible. 

Bulma paused for a moment before her face suddenly blazed with anger, taking a step forward and shoving Vegeta as hard as she could, though he barely flinched. 

"You're really going to dismiss me like nothing ever happened?" Bulma gritted through her teeth, swallowing back a soft sob, "like the other night never happened? I know you felt _something,_ Vegeta. I know you're capable of having feelings, and I know you think you're so big and bad, but I see right through that."

Vegeta held his gaze to the floor and remained still, contemplating her words as he inadvertently fueled Bulma's rage with his silence. Bulma huffed and wiped away her tears before spitting on the floor beside Vegeta's foot.

"Fuck you, Vegeta," she sneered under her breath, swiftly spinning to face Goku and grabbing hold of him tightly.

Goku furrowed his brow in confusion, glancing back and forth between Bulma and Vegeta before shrugging and pressing his fingers to his forehead. 

"See you later, Vegeta. It was really cool to meet another Saiyan! I hope we can spar someday," Goku smiled as Bulma rolled her eyes and looked in the opposite direction. 

"Not even in your dreams, Kakarot."

"You're a real funny guy," Goku naively laughed before suddenly disappearing. 

Vegeta caught one last glimpse of Bulma, feeling a small piece of his heart vanishing with her before balling his fists, contemplating what he was going to tell Frieza regarding the sudden disappearance of their captive.

* * *

Bulma shielded her drowsy eyes as salty air and water abruptly invaded her face, recognizing the sound of ocean waves crashing to the shore and determining they successfully made it home. She closed her eyes and inhaled, relishing the sea air after being held up in a cell for almost an entire week. Bulma softly smiled as she gazed up at the night sky and feebly planted her feet into the cool sand, feeling the brisk water from a broken wave brushing over them before Goku taking a step forward onto the beach distracted her. 

Although she had enjoyed spending time on this beach over the years, and she had finally made her way home, Bulma felt fragile; both emotionally and physically, which was a foreign feeling to her. With that, she bit back her emotions and put on a brave face as Goku smiled whole-heartedly. 

"You coming? Everyone is going to be so excited when they see you!"

The blue haired beauty paused, drinking in her surroundings before nodding and taking a deep breath in preparation. Although she was back to her 'normal' life, Bulma felt a piece of her that was missing, though that thought was quickly interrupted by a loud gasp coming from across the beach. She knew she should be excited and relieved, but instead she felt dread and anxiety as she spotted Yamcha from afar.

"Bulma!" Yamcha cried out as he sprinted across the sand from the Kame House doorway, to meet Bulma and Goku at the edge of the water.

The heiress smiled half-heartedly as she felt Yamcha's body crash into hers, nearly pushing her into the water. His arms were no where near as strong and sturdy as Vegeta's, she thought to herself before biting the inside of her cheek. 

"I missed you so much."

Coming back down to reality and dismissing her unfaithful thoughts, Bulma reluctantly reciprocated the embrace as hot tears began to stream down her cheeks, guilt suddenly overwhelming her.

"I missed you too, Yamcha," she lied softly, failing at an attempt to suppress a quiet whimper.

Yamcha immediately noticed his girlfriend's sniffling and pulled back from the embrace to gingerly wipe away her tears, placing his finger under her chin to pull her face closer to his. "It's okay, babe. You're safe now." 

Bulma stared up at him blankly, bottling her guilt and mixed emotions as she mustered up a faux smile and nodded through her tears. "I'm just really glad to be home now."

"Me too, babe. Me too," Yamcha murmured. "I'm so sorry that you got dragged into my mess."

"It's okay," Bulma said in a low whisper, stiffening slightly as Yamcha hugged her tighter, completely oblivious to the fact that his girlfriend had somehow managed to fall in love with her kidnapper. 

_Home sweet prison,_ Bulma ironically thought to herself, sighing into the crook of Yamcha's neck, wondering if she'd ever get to see Vegeta again.

* * *

"Touching down to Earth in T-minus 8 minutes," a robotic voice announced over the intercom, causing Vegeta heart palpations as he abruptly rose to his feet and pulled on his armor. 

He began to pace in his room frantically, panic setting in while the countdown truly began. He had 8 whole minutes left to devise a plan, which would somehow consist of fooling the most feared and powerful tyrant known to any galaxy and finding Bulma, again, to ensure her safety. Vegeta was _fairly_ confident that Goku would be able to manage keeping her safe in the interim, however he had his doubts. 

"Hey, Vegeta," a muffled voice whispered from the other side of his bedroom door, startling the prince into a faint heart attack. 

"Tch," he muttered under his breath, pulling himself together before opening the door to find a flustered-looking Raditz, eyes weary and anxious. 

"What is it?" Vegeta growled.

Raditz swallowed hard, holding his gaze to Vegeta. "We, um, have a bit of a problem."

"I'm already aware," Vegeta sharply retorted, glancing past Raditz before yanking him into the room and slamming the door shut. "Does anyone else know?"

"No, I don't think so. I just noticed she was missing when I went to sneak her a snack," Raditz explained quietly, "where the hell did she go?"

"She's on Earth, and we're going to find her the second we touch down."

"How the fuck -"

"No more questions," Vegeta snapped, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes before exhaling. "I was reckless, Raditz; that's how she escaped."

Raditz furrowed his brow, carefully observing Vegeta's odd behavior before nodding knowingly. Vegeta harrumphed and crossed his arms upon noticing Raditz's awareness of his feelings for the Earthling, shooting a warning glare to Raditz before exhaling.

"Her friend who's a Saiyan showed up out of no where and brought her back to Earth. He knew the Instant Transmission technique, so he was able to locate her ki."

"Another Saiyan?" Raditz asked incredulously before realization struck him. "Was his name Kakarot?"

Vegeta nodded. "Yes, it was your brother. I didn't think of it in the moment as I was a bit... distracted, however your brother is alive and well, living on Earth."

Raditz remained still, taking in Vegeta's words carefully before finally nodding. "We'll address that later, but first, we need to find Bulma before Frieza finds out she's missing, and I think we might be able to manage that."

"We can," Vegeta confirmed, "and we might be able to get away with her absence, even if he does find out."

"And how do you suppose we do that?" Raditz asked with apparent skepticism in his voice. 

"I obviously have a plan, you buffoon," Vegeta spat, glancing down at his scouter on the nightstand. "We're going to offer collecting these _wish orbs_ I've heard about on Earth, known as Dragon Balls, which grant you one wish once they've all been collected."

Raditz raised an eyebrow as Vegeta continued. "When I reviewed Bulma's file, I found that she created some sort of Dragon Ball radar to help track down each ball's location. So, if Frieza finds out she's not on board, we just advise that she's tracking down the Dragon Balls for us."

"That actually sounds like a pretty solid plan," Raditz affirmed.

"Precisely," Vegeta answered with confidence, reaching for his scouter and clipping it to his ear. 

"Let's request an audience with Frieza, then we'll find Bulma at dawn."

Raditz nodded and gave Vegeta a quick nervous look before exiting his bedroom, leaving the prince alone with his thoughts. 

Vegeta trudged over to the window, focusing on the stars, wondering if Bulma was thinking about him, too. Sighing as he momentarily shrugged away his thoughts, he spun around and pushed through the bedroom door to commence phase one of the plan.


End file.
